My father in law Has given me a 2006 Dodge Dakota Quad cab 4 x 4. 6 cyl. He just bought a new truck and asked me if I wanted a work truck. He bought it new in 2006 only has 82,000 miles on it but needs some work. Also it's all stock. I'm gonna turn it into a truck for just driving back and forth to work which is only 10 miles a day. It definitely needs shocks and struts it feels.like I'm driving a bouncy castle down the road. And it has a tic that gets worse when you give her gas I'm pretty sure it's an exhaust leak maybe a header problem. Unless y'all think it could br something else. This is my first dakota so im a noob.And I wanted to put a small lift on it 4 in or so ide like to put at least 31 10.50 under it. And it's got fender rust on all 4 fender wells the rears are the worst not all the way thru but paint is bubbling I was going to get rid of the rust primer thencover up the primer with some big fender flares. Also would like some offset on the wheels give it a more aggressive stance. Please any suggestions are welcome, websites to look at for parts would be great I have a 2500 dollar budget.

 

Well, the price is right. You can't go wrong with free. Hold off on a lift and things like that. Since it's going to be a work truck, make certain maintenance is taken care of. Shocks are important. They keep you from bouncing off the road. You want it reliable as you're going to use it to get to work. So it has to start every time and be able to get you there. Bosses get upset when you don't show up. Get tires close to stock, maybe a size larger. On the rust, get in there and clean the rust if you can and slap some paint on it to stop further rusting. My father told me when I started driving that anytime you get a used car, to figure on brakes, tires and battery. These are wear items and cheaping out on them can cost you BIG time. Add in the shocks you know are bad and track down the exhaust leak. If the heat and air works (with winter coming on, especially the heat), the truck is driveable. you're golden.

Down the road, once you've gotten ahead on other bills and salted a bit away for hard times, then you can modify the truck to suit your taste. On the other hand, low miles doesn't mean it'll be a great truck. I've seen fire trucks with 15,000 miles with worn out engines from idling at fires, need a new engine. I think what you have is your father-in-law is trying to help you out. Thank him, fix what needs fixing and drive it. Think of it as an early Christmas present.

Mods, this might be better moved to the third gen Dakota forum general section.

 

As a work truck, I would focus on function and reliability first. Everything after that happens as you're able. The suspension on these is naturally stiff, especially when unloaded. That's what makes these great work trucks for moving a load.

As a work truck (assuming that also includes hauling or towing loads), I'm not sure that you want to level the truck. The truck naturally levels when loaded as the rear suspension compresses. Seems like lifting the front end at all would cause the truck to immediately be in a "nose up" stance when hauling or towing.

For $2500, you're looking at a coolant flush, transmission oil and differential oil replacements, steering and brake fluid flushes, disc and drum brake replacements, exhaust repair/replacement, oil change, new mid-range all terrain tires in stock size (no new wheels, spaces, etc), and strut replacements. You might have some leftover for fender repairs with paint matching. Not sure how much of this you'll do yourself...so, mileage may vary. But, I'd say your budget gets a free truck back into good condition. Not a bad price for a solid work truck with less than 100K miles.

 

If you want to avoid future problems, don’t install any sort of lift. Most you can do on these trucks is install coil spring spacers and rear lift blocks/helper springs without spending thousands of dollars. Installing spacers eventually destroys the front end components. The front suspension on these trucks was not designed to be easily lifted. Avoid the headache and leave it stock. Read the stickie on tire sizes to see the max you can run with stock suspension. As stated, put your money into maintenance items and fixing the rust and exhaust leak (most likely broken exhaust manifold bolts) if you want a long lasting truck. For shocks and struts, your choices are limited. Monroe is a good upgrade from factory and Rancho will give you the firmest ride. There is hardly any aftermarket support for these trucks, so, keep it maintained and drive it. It will last you a good while. Do some reading in the FAQ section as well as the various stickies. If it’s been done to a Dakota, there’s a write up for it here. Welcome to the forum.

 

Welcome to the Dakota club! That being said there ain't a lot of 'off the shelf' mods for these trucks. Not saying that certain mods aren't possible, it's just how much does one want to invest their time and money. If it's a daily driver you seek and need shocks and struts the best bang for the buck is 'Monroe quick struts and shocks'. They are quick and easy to install, reasonably priced and will give the front a small but noticeable lift (1/2"-1"). the ticking noise is probably or more than likely the exhaust header. Either the gasket is blown, manifold is warped or the threads have sheared off inside the heads. Very common problem for the Dakotas but easily fix with helicoils and new parts. As far as parts 'rockauto is a good place to start. If you want genuine mopar then mymoparparts.com or moparoverstock. For good Dakota mods as it stands to date and what is available try AirRam Performance. My general advice is anything over 2" lift and you're going to have to lower the front transfercase to keep the CV axles in the correct position.

Btw we'd love to see some pics and some updates too \o/

 

If you're going to do struts, my experience is that the Monroe quick struts leveled out the truck without having to put a leveling kit on it. I have loved the quick struts. Did my entire front end at around 130,000 miles. At the mileage you're at, might want to spend a weekend and do ball joints, tie rod ends, sway bar bushings, and possibly wheel hub/bearings while you're in there removing the struts. I bought all my front end parts from rock auto for around $600 and did it all myself. Really improved the ride and handling. I agree with the other posters, make it reliable and do the maintenance stuff first...oil change, differential fluid, trans fluid, etc. If you change coolant make sure its the HOAT stuff, I buy mine from Napa under the Zerex brand name. I have stuck with stock tires and will not put a lift kit on mine due to how much it affects putting stress on other components like your CV axles.

I too am starting to see a little paint bubbling right over my passenger side rear fender well. My clear coat on the roof and hood is starting to peel, so I was thinking about having a body shop repaint that and give me a quote on fixing the bubbling over the rear fender. The way they are made its easy for dirt and water to stay in that spot; if you rub your hand underneath there you will feel it. Try to keep that area clean.

Congrats on getting the free truck, it will be worth spending a little to fix her up. Mine (2007) has 186,000 on it and still runs great.

 

The tick may also be due to superheated carbon deposits inside the cylinders when the truck is hot, causing the fuel/air mixture to ignite prematurely before the spark plug fires. I had that a few years ago and it went away virtually immediately when I started running 93 octane (higher octane is less susceptible to preignition/detonation, and "burns" slower than lower octane). The easy troubleshoot is to run two full tanks of 93 after your next nearly empty-tank fillup and see if it goes away by the second fillup (after all the remaining small amount of 87 has been blended into and becomes nearly straight 93). If the tick goes away, you know it's carbon deposits that have been pre-igniting the low-octane 87. If it doesn't, the fix is going to be more painful.